How in this world are they already 8 weeks old? This is just NOT acceptable, I am in no way shape or form close to ready to think about them leaving. So I'm not going to think about it. Maybe I'll even refuse to assemble their puppy binders and just send them home with a sheaf of colored papers (ok, I won't actually do that but I can think about doing it)
They are getting quieter much faster in the crates at night but I'm also being selective about who gets a 'roommate'. When we get back home, nobody will get a roommate but we are working up to that right now.
We've had a busy day for their 8 week birthday. They got up a little before my alarm but it turns out it was already daylight. We went outside for potty and a little playtime and then came back inside until breakfast at 8. I went back to sleep a little earlier than they did but they were mostly quiet so that's good enough for me.
They had 'big dog' showers today not puppies in the sink baths. It was still with very diluted baby shampoo and rinsing their faces was mostly with a cup of water instead of the spray but they did all get a pro forma face wetting and rinsing, too. After that, the humans got to get cleaned up while the puppies played and napped.
There were enough of us here to feed them lunch in individual dishes. I tried that by myself the other day and it was wildly ineffective. Today, they sat for their lunch and dinner like big dogs. Dinner was a little easier because we took them into another room one by one nad fed them. I'm not certain about the other puppies but the one I fed sat for her food and conitnued sitting while she ate it. Not that it takes them long to eat but I still foudn it amusing that she maintained her position. I wonder if she thought that was part of the game and that maybe more would be forthcoming if she kept sitting.
They have started getting things down from the top of the crates bordering their area. It's a little cute and it is impressive when they know what they want (and know to look up for items of interest) and figure out how to get it. It's much less cute and a lot more worrisome when a puppy is on to of the crate and another puppy is hot on her heels. We'll have to watch that for the next day or so but it wasn't totally unexpected. I was talking about that today and someone reminded me of their mother as a puppy balancing on the top of the tunnel to try to reach something she wanted. ;-)
I still find them incredibly engaging. I had something I needed to do today so I told Tamara that I wasn't allowed to play with the puppies this afternoon until I had finished my 'homework.' Even sleeping, they are cute (I may have cuddled in their pen on their bed after their showers this morning) but awake they are even more so. It makes up for the occasional needle teeth they try to sink into our flesh. We were discussing tonight that puppy toys really should be as much like flesh as possible, it would make it easier to redirect ;-). They are actually getting much better about it and are telling one another more and more often about too hard vs ok.
Mila seems to enjoy playing with them outside. She was lying down by the raised bed playing a little game of bitey mouth with a puppy lying underneath it. She'll also lead them on games of chase occasionally when she isn't busy warning passing dogs away. Her mama would be proud of her.
It's almost time to call it a day and crate the pupsters. Puppy breath to all (although a couple of them had dirt breath earlier because they had been joining their mother in a little digging and eating of grass roots). Nighty Nighty Nighty
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